Meadowbank fire: Man is fighting for life after suffering horrific burns in mysterious explosion at a penthouse apartment
A man fights for his life on New Year's Day after a mysterious explosion in his top-floor apartment.
Emergency services rushed to Angus St in Meadowbank, north-west Sydne, about 3.30pm on Monday after flames came from the apartment complex.
A man in his 40s was rescued from the fire and taken to Royal North Shore Hospital in a critical condition with severe burns to 80 percent of his body.
A firefighter with chest pain was taken to Concord Hospital as a precaution.
Eight fire engines were called to the scene when the fire was extinguished at around 4.20pm. No other apartments suffered any damage.
A man in his 40s is spending New Year's Day in a critical condition after an explosion at his apartment in Sydney's northwest about 3.30pm on Monday (pictured)
He was rescued from the fire but suffered burns to 80 percent of his body and is fighting for his life at Royal North Shore Hospital.
Fire and Rescue NSW spokesman Phil Sheedy said the man was found unconscious by firefighters in the hallway outside his apartment.
“The explosion happened and he obviously managed to get out the front door and collapse,” he told 9News.
Footage from the scene shows the man being carried in a large piece of cloth by emergency services before being loaded into an ambulance.
Residents of the apartment complex had to be evacuated as firefighters tried to contain the blaze for nearly an hour.
A resident of an apartment complex across the street, David Wagner, said he saw “the whole thing.”
“It was just an explosion and then black smoke… You could hear people screaming for help, but I couldn't do anything about it,” he told the Daily telegram.
Firefighters and NSW Police cordoned off the entirety of Bay Drive as a hazardous materials response unit arrived on scene.